Page 26 of Knuckles (Dragon Riders MC 4)
“Yes. I know it in my gut. And you know how my gut’s always been.”
“Yep. I do. So, take this lead. Go do the damn recon, and you have permission to search the grounds for any signs of Simone. Someone comes at you? Put ‘em down. None of us are playing around anymore.”
My hand gravitated to the gun on my hip. “Wonderful. On my way.”
“Good. Let us know when you’re out of there. Meanwhile, Ash and Sly have been out since six this morning searching for Simone. We won’t let that front drop off.”
I paused. “What?”
He chuckled. “You think we’re gonna let family drop off the radar like that? Hell, no. You do your job, and we’ve got your back. Since when the fuck is that a surprise?”
I wasn't sure what tears felt like anymore. But the burning sensation behind my eyes reminded me of what it felt like.
“Thank you,” I said.
“Dude, anytime. Now, go to your job. Once you’re done with recon—and I mean a full recon—you can get back to searching. Just try to keep your room clean, yeah? Apparently, there have been some complaints about a smell coming from your room.”
I revved my engine. “Keeping tabs on me?”
He snickered. “Always. Let us know if you need anything.”
“I will.”
And I meant it that time, too.
I headed down the back roads lined with woods that would shield the sound of my bike. Then, when I was half a mile out, I pulled off onto the side of the road and hid my bike in some bushes. I pulled my gun and crouched down, preparing myself for the long trek through the woods.
Then, my phone vibrated on my hip.
“Now, what?” I growled.
I yanked my phone out of my case and held it to my ear.
“What is it now?”
Sly yelled in my ear. “We’re in pursuit! We’re in pursuit!”
I leapt back toward my bike. “In pursuit of who? Where are you?”
Crackling sounded on the other end of the line. “Skele—’s men. In a Wen—off the—ramp.”
I shook my head. “I can’t hear you. You’re breaking up. Can you text me!?”
Then, the line went dead.
“Fuck!” I roared.
However, a text came rolling through my phone. From Sly. And when I opened it up, I threw my leg back over my bike and peeled out of the woods.
We had a location on Skeleton as well as his men. Sly and Ash were in pursuit of the henchmen. And Skeleton?
Well, he was apparently in some fucking place called Cherry Branch.
I punched that shit into my GPS faster than I ever could. And when I saw I still had a three-hour drive, I thought my head was going to pop off. I looked up, gazing through the woods at the half-mile of expansive wilderness I’d have to trudge through in order to do my recon.
Or I could go after the man that took Simone.
“You promise you’ll always be here, JayJay?”
I gazed into her beautiful blue eyes. “Always, S. You can always count on me.”
“Especially now,” I murmured.
I sped away from the woods and got my ass onto the highway knowing damn good and well it would probably cost me my leather cut. I didn’t care, though. Nothing mattered right now except her. I sped through traffic and weaved between cars. I even outran a police cruiser that I blew past in the process. The drive seemed longer than anything I’d ever done in my entire fucking life. But once I came across the exits for downtown Cherry Branch about two and a half hours later, I careened off the exit.
And started showing Skeleton’s picture to anyone that would speak with me.
There were a few people that recognized him, but they didn’t know much. Just that he seemed like the kind of person to stay away, from. So, they did. At least these people were smart. I asked them where he was and where they think he was headed, but as I canvassed the restaurants and bars, he had dipped himself into, I noticed something.
He was walking into all of these places, just like I was.
I walked into an ice cream parlor. “Has anyone in here right now been working for the past few hours?”
A young girl raised her hand. “Me. I’ve been here since opening.”
I held up my phone with Skeleton’s picture on it. “Do you remember seeing this man?”
Blood drained from her face. “Why?”
“I’m looking for him because he’s very bad and he’s taken someone from me that I care about greatly. If you can tell me anything about him, I’d really appreciate it.”
Her eyes darted around. “I don’t really know. He just came in for some ice cream.”
“Are you sure it was just that?”
A man walked up to us. “Excuse me, but if you’re not going to buy something you need to leave.”
I shoved the phone in his face. “Know this man?”
